The Pureblood Chronicles Book 1: The Daedra's Dragon
by Vokun's Army
Summary: A teenage orphan living on Corouscant, looks for answers about strange dreams. He stumbles upon the theory of the multi-verse and meets with famous heroes, like Spyro and Cynder. However, the Daedra also wants this boy. He must find out the truth about his past. All categories are listed in the story.
1. Author

**Content Usage Notice**

Most references, ideas, settings, plot, and characters used in this story are copyright of their creators and I do not possess ownership. The following themes were put into place of this story in order from most used to least used:

Legend of Spyro Gaming Series

Kingdom Hearts Gaming Series

Eon Kid Television Series

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Final Fantasy 13/13-2

Jak and Daxter Gaming Series

If you like at least some of these themes, I want you to give this story a chance and please comment. This is my first fanfic and I want to know what people think of it. If you want to see your favorite television show, movie, game, or book in this book series, let me know and I will try my best to put it in.


	2. CH 1: Waking Dreams

"I can say without a doubt that there are an infinite number of universes. Most are like our own... except for one or two significant events, exactly the same." (Lex Luthor: Injustice Gods Among Us)

When he opened his eyes, he saw his entire body engulfed in flame. He felt no pain or emotion. He felt nothing. The world is black around him and ashes fell slowly to the ground like snow. Suddenly, he felt his body shift. A woman with slightly tan skin and long black hair had kneeled down to take him into her arms. Her uniform was dark blue and included a shirt, pants, gloves, and boots. She was beautiful and didn't seem to feel the heat around her. She grasped him and all he could feel was the warmth, not from the environment around him, but from her. Her crystal-blue eyes were wet with tears.

"Please, don't die!" shouted the girl. "Please come back, please!" She spoke in a loving and caring tone that he had not heard before. He began to close his eyes as the girl cried out in grief. The world around him began to blur and fade as her last words echoed in his head.

He awoke with his heart pounding and his head throbbing. Alex looked around his room from the comfort of his bed. It was an average-sized room with white walls and posters of his favorite pod-racers placed randomly upon them. He stared at his large metal desk and small closet. This world suddenly seem familiar to him again. He got out of bed and got dressed. He wore his long-sleeve light blue shirt with a white emblem of the Republic Insignia in the center of it. He put on a black vest over his shirt and wore dark blue jeans. He looked at the digital clock on his desk, to see the time, and put on his black running shoes.

He simply sat back down on his bed. The vision of the dream came back to him, the same dream he's had for the past month. It seemed like he knew the girl, even though he had only seen her in his dreams. He slowly walked to the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face. He stared at himself in the mirror. He had an average height and an average build. He had light blue eyes and dark brown hair that was slightly scruffy. Alex looked back at the clock to see that only fifteen minutes had passed.

School didn't start for another hour, but Alex decided to catch the bus that goes near his apartment in a few minutes. Alex grabbed his tablet and ran to the bus stop. He entered the large aerial transport, paid the driver one credit and took to the sky. In the air, he saw the entire city. He witnessed lines of airships flying in every different direction. He saw buildings stretching hundreds of feet into the sky. Alex saw this view every day and never got tired of it.

When Alex arrived at his school, he was surprised to see his two best friends waiting for him at the bus stop. When he stepped off the bus, he ran towards his friends.

"Were you guys seriously going to wait for like forty-five minutes for me to get here?" Alex asked, happy to see them.

"Actually, we were about to leave but Ashley thought you would be on this bus," explained his friend Jacob. Jacob was just inches taller than Alex, but has the same build. His skin was the slightest bit tanner and he had light brown hair that was thicker than his.

"And I was right Jacob! Give me my five credits!" Ashley said with an open hand. Ashley was a few inches shorter than Alex and had long blonde hair. Her eyes were grass-green and had the whitest skin out of all of them. Jacob reached into his jean pocket and pulled out five thin plastic cards and placed them into her open hand.

Alex rolled his eyes at the two of them. He noticed that they were wearing jeans, similar to Alex's, and their favorite jackets. Their jackets were mainly black with a red version of the republic insignia on the left shoulder. They wore shoes identical to his.

"You look exhausted," Jacob spoke, noticing Alex's condition.

"I had the same dream last night," Alex explained.

"The dream with the girl crying over you?" Jacob asked.

"Yeah, I seem to have no energy afterwards," answered Alex with a yawn following. Ashley chuckled at the thought of him dreaming of a woman.

"C'mon Ashley, this isn't funny. He needs to see a psychologist or something," Jacob said towards Ashley.

"He's right Alex, this looks serious,"

"Yeah but if I see a psychologist, they're gonna think I'm insane and send me to an asylum," Alex spoke sarcastically.

"I didn't say anything about an asylum," Jacob said.

"You thought it though," Alex said, mocking him.

"Anyways, you guys ready for history today?" Jacob asked, anxious to change the subject.

"Oh yeah I almost forgot! Today we're learning about the Great Battle of Tatooine," remembered Alex, "I just hope I can stay awake during class." The three of them chuckled as they waited for school to start. They slowly walked to their first period class when the first bell rang. On the way there, Alex couldn't stop thinking about his dream. When they arrived, the three of them took seats right next to each other. Students began to fill the classroom as both the first bell and tardy bell rang.

"Class, today we will be discussing the Battle of Tatooine that happened only two years ago," announced the War History teacher, Mr. Grant. He was a middle-aged man with little hair and an outgoing personality Alex thought most teachers lacked. He was one of his most favorite teachers of all time. On the holo-board, he displayed a picture of a man as Alex set up his notes on his tablet.

"Alex, he kinda' looks like you," Jacob whispered. Alex quickly went to look at the picture. Jacob was right. At first, Alex thought he was staring at a mirror. The man almost looked identical to Alex, with the only difference being the uniform the man was wearing. Then, the image of Alex's dream came back to him.

His head started pounding and throbbing. The pounding got louder and louder as he grasped his head, trying to make it stop. It was no use. As the sound grew louder, the world around him began to blur. Everything faded until it was completely black. The sound disappeared as quickly as it came. He saw nothing. He heard nothing. He felt nothing. For several seconds, there was nothing around him. Slowly, an image appeared before him. The image began to brighten the dark world. This image wasn't his dream. This one, was different.


	3. CH 2: More Questions than Answers

It was an image of a bright green pasture with trees and a bright blue sky. Everything was alive and growing; it was so peaceful. He had never seen this much green at once in his life. He was running on the fresh grass with the woman from his first dream. This time, she was happy. Every time she looked at him, she smiled. Alex couldn't help but smile back at her. After a few moments, the image faded and shifted to a new scene.

He saw a young man, a few years older than he was, with spiky white hair and a strange yellow uniform. Alex was sitting in a room while being handed an artifact by the man. The man was also smiling, as if he was visiting a good friend. The brief scene dissolved and formed into another image.

Now, Alex was wearing white metallic armor with black stripes across the arms and chest. He wore a helmet that was similarly designed and held a standard-issue blaster rifle. He was running across a dry and vast desert into a massive battle.

Republic clones fell to the ground left and right as destructive CIS battle droids took control of the war zone. He was running towards a large, enclosed, compound. As he ran to the compound, the world around him became brighter and brighter until it went white. Moments later, he saw the woman crying over him again.

"Please don't die!" she cried out just as before. "Please come back, please… Marty!" That last word echoed in his head as the image faded into darkness. A bright flash caught his attention and he opened his eyes to see from the bed in a nurse's office. He sat up, trying to recover from his visions.

"Alex! I'm so glad you're okay!" shouted Ashley, hugging him. Alex was so shocked that he began to cough.

"Let the kid breath," Jacob said to Ashley. She let go and backed up feeling slightly embarrassed. Alex looked around and saw his friends and the principal. "You alright?" Jacob asked Alex.

"Yeah, just a little tired," he answered. His friends gave a slight chuckle as the principle walked towards Alex.

"Maybe your parents should pick you up," he suggested. Alex winced as if he was poked. Ashley pulled the principal a few feet back.

"Mr. Stone, he never knew his parents," Ashley whispered to the principal, "He lived in an orphanage until he was seventeen." Principal Stone automatically looked embarrassed. He looked over at Alex, then back to Ashley.

"Can you take him home today?" he asked Ashley.

"Wait, she can take him home but I can't leave campus even during lunch?" asked Jacob quietly.

"I know Ashley will be back when she's done," Principal Stone said giving Jacob a serious look. Jacob looked at the principal for a few seconds before nodding his head.

"Fair enough," Jacob said agreeing with the principal. They walked back to Alex feeling a little awkward.

"I'm going to take you home," Ashley said to Alex. He simply nodded his head as he got up off the bed.

"I'll see you in a little bit," Ashley said to Jacob. He waved his hand as he walked out of the, now empty, room. They reached the parking lot and climbed into her speeder. It was bright red and didn't have a roof. The speeder was very small and lean; only two people could sit inside of it. The two of them sat still in their seats for a while as Alex tried not to make eye contact with Ashley. He vaguely remembered the images he saw last. The only thing he remembered was that last word "Marty".

"Ashley, how long was I… asleep?" Alex asked as he stared at the floor of the vehicle.

"About an hour," she answered, starting up the engine. The two remained quiet as they took off into the air. They flew in between buildings and traffic as Alex looked up to see the skyline and all the busy skyways. Alex remained quiet as Ashley glanced over at him every few minutes. When they arrived at his apartment, Alex climbed out of the speeder and simply stood there.

"Thank you, for taking me home," Alex said facing away from Ashley.

"No problem," she said trying not to sound worried, "If there's anything I can help you with, let me know," Alex started walking as she turned on the engine. He stopped walking and turned around before Ashley could take off.

"Actually, there is something you can help me with," Alex thought.

"Anything, you name it," Ashley replied.

"Can you take me to the library?"

"Of course, hop in," she answered gladly. Alex climbed back into the speeder and they headed to the nearest public library. One part of Alex wanted to know what was happening to him. Another wanted to see the view of the city's skyline again, and a third simply wanted some company. As they flew up and down, meters by meters, Ashley finally found the nerve to say something.

"When you were unconscious, did you have the same dream?" she asked still paying attention to traffic.

"I had several different dreams, but they were all a blur to me," Alex answered.

"Well I hope you can figure all of this out," said Ashley.

"You and me both," Alex added trying hard to be positive. A small smile appeared out of the corner of her mouth as they continued flying. Ashley parked outside of the library entrance and Alex climbed out. He headed straight for the doors, not looking back as Ashley took off into the sky.

When he got inside, he stared at all of the massive data banks. He looked around for the nearest empty computer and walked to it. He searched for the section about psychology and dreams. When he found the location, he slowly jogged to that section of the library.

He got to the data shelf and started looking for information. The Galactic Republic deleted about ten gigabytes of information recently, which was odd to Alex. The rest of the information was useless to him. Alex quit his search and backed up a few inches to think. He stared at the data shelf for a few seconds until something had caught his attention. He saw the corner of something underneath the data shelf. He bent down to pick it up and saw that it was a small book, about the size of a journal.

He couldn't believe it! He knew just as well as anybody else that books hadn't been used for nearly two thousand years. He sat down in an unoccupied section of the library and looked at the book. The title of it was "Mind Games" by Ally Von Rheimer.

He skimmed through the first few chapters that were about how the mind was a pathway to knowledge. The next few chapters were about being gifted in someway when you see symbols. Alex flipped to a random page that had strange runes he had never seen before. At first he thought it was some sort of brain exercise until he paid close attention to them. He saw the symbols begin to move and form letters the harder he stared at it.

It was translated into words, but they didn't make any sense to him. Alex saw that some of the words repeated and figured that it was a chant of some kind. He slipped the book into his inner vest pocket, and walked outside to the back patio. Alex made sure that nobody could see him making a fool of himself, in case this was for nothing, and took out the book. He flipped to the page with the chant and cleared his throat.

"Drun kruziik frod. Drun hahnu lok. Drun kaaz lumnaar. Drun dovah lein," he read out loud. When he finished, he felt a small pain in his left forearm. The pain dramatically increased more and more until it felt like his arm was submerged in boiling water. Alex dropped the book by his feet and pulled up his left arm sleeve. A strange rune had appeared on his forearm. It was in the shape of a diamond with a circle in the center. The rune started to glow white and Alex grasped his arm with his other hand.

A large circle glowing the same color had appeared around his feet. It became a massive towering column of light surrounding him. Through the light, Alex saw people staring out of their windows and looking out of their air speeders. The column of light closed in around him until it was just centimeters away from touching him. He heard a loud booming sound as he was shot straight up into the sky by the beam of light.


	4. CH 3: A New World

A few seconds later, he landed on the ground lying on his back with his eyes closed. When Alex opened them, he struggled to come to his senses. Alex sat up holding his head in his hands; it ached severely. He, then, placed his hands on the ground and felt grass. Alex looked at the ground around him and saw a large field of grass with trees in the distance, the same field he had seen in his vision.

It was too lush and green for him to be on Corouscant. He had never seen so much green in his life. It seemed impossible for Alex to be seeing what he was seeing. It was so beautiful and calm, until he looked behind him.

Over twenty bloody corpses of cheetahs and giant apes lay motionless on the ground with miscellaneous weapons scattered on the ground around them. The cheetahs had robes and the apes had pieces of metal on their shoulders and chest that looked like armor.

Alex tried hard to take in all of what has happened. He read a book and was taken to, what looked like a battlefield. He stared at the ground in confusion and saw the book. He picked it up and put it in his vest pocket. One of the cheetahs was slowly moving their leg. Alex rushed over and flipped him onto his back. Its robes were torn and had a large gash in its chest.

The cheetah opened its eyes and looked at Alex.

"Eon," he muttered. Alex was astonished that he could speak but the cheetah's condition kept his attention.

"Should I… get a doctor or something?" Alex asked worriedly. The cheetah said nothing as he gave Alex a sheathed dagger. Alex took the dagger and watched him close his eyes and stop breathing. He was confused beyond belief and, for the first time, he was scared. Alex attached the sheathed dagger to his vest and looked around. This world was so strange, yet he had seen it in his dreams. Alex had no idea as what to do. Then, he heard ruffling in the trees behind him. He turned around and unsheathed the dagger.

The dagger was about a foot long and, surprisingly, light. It was completely black with silver runes, similar to the ones in the book, etched into it. One side was straight and the other side curved and formed a point with the first side. It had a black pommel stone at the end of the dagger hilt. Alex readied himself.

The sound grew louder as he saw trees leaning and shifting back and forth. The sound stopped as three large figures dropped onto the ground in front of him. They stood up straight and Alex saw that they were massive apes. They were about ten feet tall with jet-black fur on their bodies. They had blue noses and red mouths. Alex would have thought that they looked funny, but he saw their ratty fur and many bruises and scrapes. All three of the apes had a large bone hanging on their back. The apes looked at Alex and seemed just as confused as he was.

"How did you get back here? All of the portals were destroyed," asked the ape in the middle with a deep male voice.

"I've never been here before, and how can you talk?" Alex replied. The apes simply chuckled as they took the bones from off their backs and held it with their right hands.

"Let's take care of this," the middle ape said to the ape on Alex's right. That ape advanced towards Alex as he held up the dagger. The ape walked faster and faster until he was right on top of him then smacked him in the gut with the bone. Alex dropped to the ground clutching the dagger and his stomach. The other two apes cheered as he held the club above Alex's head, ready to smash.

Then, as if uncontrollably, Alex sliced the ape's right ankle with the dagger and kicked it, causing him to stagger and fall backwards. Alex stood back up and held his ground. The other two apes walked towards Alex while he ran towards them. The first ape made a horizontal swing as Alex ducked underneath and slashed at its side causing it to collapse. He stared, for a few seconds, at the middle ape, and then ran towards him.

He got ready for a vertical swing but Alex was faster. He ran up and slashed his right wrist forcing him to drop his club. All three apes squirmed on the ground

They looked at Alex, and then at their wounds. Alex bent down to wipe off the blood from the dagger onto the grass. When he was finished, he sheathed the dagger and stared at the apes one at a time.

"Leave now!" Alex ordered the apes. The ape that seemed to be leading the others thought carefully and stared at the others.

"Retreat!" he ordered to the others. They all stumbled back to the trees and climbed away. Alex made sure that the apes were leaving before looking around. Suddenly, a thought came to him. He realized that he fought off giant apes with clubs without ever using any kind of weapon in the past. How did he survive? Alex tried to shake the thought aside by looking at the world he was in. He looked up towards the bright blue sky. In the distance, he saw two objects approaching him.

Alex ran to the nearest tree to hide behind as the objects, creatures, landed just feet away from where he was. He stared at them for a few minutes as the two creatures looked around. To Alex, they looked like…dragons; both had wings and four legs. One was mainly purple with a yellow chest and two curved yellow horns on the top of its head. Its wings were orange and it had yellow spines going across the back. It also had a yellow, leaf-shaped, blade at the end of its tail.

The other one was mostly black with a pink chest and underbelly. Its wings were also pink with a black outlining. It had silver braces on its front legs and neck. Six white horns ran across the edge of its head. Both were a few feet shorter than he was.

Alex couldn't believe what he was seeing. It seemed so unreal for him. The two dragon-like creatures searched the nearby area until they saw the slaughter of cheetahs and apes. The two of them walked over to examine the scene.

"Do you think this was the retrieval team?" said the black dragon sounding like a female about his age.

"More than likely," said the purple dragon sounding like a male also about his age, "But I don't see the artifact they went to retrieve." Alex stared at the sheathed dagger at his waist

"They never even stood a chance against the apes," said the black dragon.

"C'mon we have to focus. If Terrador wanted this artifact, then it must be very important," said the purple dragon nudging on the black dragon's head.

"You're right," said the black dragon with a sigh, "Maybe one of these apes has it?" The two creatures began to search the ape corpses. Behind him, Alex saw the trees leaning back and forth and automatically dropped down to the ground as low as possible. More large apes swung from tree to tree before landing around the two dragons. About fifteen apes surrounded the two dragons as they stood their ground. These apes had armor similar to the dead ones and large swords.

"Where is the artifact?" asked the purple dragon with no fear in his voice.

"Funny, we were going to ask you the same thing," replied one of the apes. The two of them looked at each other in confusion. "It doesn't matter. The master will be equally pleased with your demise. Attack!"

All of the apes ran towards the two dragons with their swords in the air. One ran towards the black one and the dragon swung its tail at the ape, cutting its leg. The two dragons took into the air and began to dive-bomb them. The purple one breathed fire while gusts of wind shot out of the mouth of the black dragon.

One by one, the apes fell to the ground. They were outmatched until the purple dragon flew to close to the ground and had its leg cut by the swing of a sword. It crashed to the ground, unable to move. The five apes that were left ran to the down dragon as it defended itself with fire. The black dragon gasped and swooped down to defend the other dragon. It blew away two of the apes and slashed at the third, killing it.

The fourth ape came up and slammed the black dragon's head with its fist causing it to collapse. The ape, then, grabbed the dragon by the tail and threw it a few feet away from the purple dragon.

"No, Cynder!" shouted the purple dragon struggling to get up. Just inches away, Alex saw the black dragon doing the same.

"Spyro…Spyro," the black dragon muttered. Alex turned his attention back to the purple dragon. The two remaining apes walked towards him with their swords drawn. They raised their swords above the dragon's head. In that split second, Alex realized that if the apes attacked him and these dragons attacked the apes, then the dragons might help him.

Alex got up and rushed out of hiding, grabbing their attention. He unsheathed his dagger and ran towards one of the apes. Both apes ran towards him, but Alex was faster. Alex slashed at the ankle of the first ape, causing it to fall, and stabbed the second one in an unprotected area of its chest. It fell, dead, to the ground as Alex stared at the other ape getting back up and shaking off his bad ankle. The two stared at each other for a few seconds before Alex noticed the pommel stone on the dagger was glowing.

He grabbed it with his left hand and it easily popped off. It was glowing purple and it slowly turned to black as it burned in his hand. He dropped it and it shattered on the grass. A small black whirlpool appeared on that spot and two bright yellow orbs appeared. Then, something crawled out of the whirlpool. A weird creature emerged from the pool as it dissipated around its feet. It had the general shape of a human. It was completely black and cloaked in shadows. It had no face other than the two yellow orbs for eyes. It was about seven feet tall and had massive curved horns.

The creature jumped around quickly and pounced on the ape. The ape used his sword and slashed at its left arm and the entire thing fell off, turning into dust. There was no blood, just sand coming from where its arm used to be. It used its sharp massive claws on its right hand to rip the ape apart. When the ape fell to the ground, the creature turned its attention to Alex.

He ran up and tried slashing the head, but the dagger went right through the creature. Alex dropped the dagger on the ground and backed up slowly. He tripped over a dead ape and fell to the grass. Alex frantically used his hands to back up until he was pinned against the tree. The creature looked ready to pounce when it simply disintegrated into sand.

Alex shielded his eyes as the sand moved towards the dagger and reformed the pommel stone at the end of the dagger. A giant black, key-like, object stuck out of the ground in place of where the creature was. Alex saw a figure land behind the weapon and pick it up with their right hand.

The stranger was completely covered in silver armor with curved horns coming along the sides of the helmet and had the build of a female The armor made her look like a knight as she approached Alex with the object. He panicked, but couldn't move any further back. The masked stranger pointed the object towards Alex's face, as if hesitant to strike.

It had the general shape of a key with a purple gemstone at the beginning of the blade section of the object. A black keychain hung at the edge of the handle. At the edge of the blade, a large piece of decorative metal gave it the shape of a key.

"I spared your life this time. Don't, make me regret it," she spoke as the object disappeared right in front of him. A small purple orb formed in the palm of the stranger's left hand and she flicked it towards Alex's head. He immediately closed his eyes and fell asleep.


	5. CH 4: The Dojo

Alex opened his eyes seconds later to be looking up to a ceiling from a bed. His vision was blurry and he felt somebody grasp him as he sat up.

"Ashley, get off me," he said almost groaning.

"Huh? Who's Ashley," she said letting go. Alex's senses came back to him as he looked around. He saw, just inches away from him, a black scaly face with horns. He panicked and fell off the round bed. Alex backed up towards a wall, and reached for his dagger. He looked down and saw that both the dagger and its scabbard were gone.

"Where's my dagger?" Alex asked frantically.

"Marty, it's okay. You're acting like we're gonna' hurt you," said the creature who Alex realized was the black dragon from before.

"Is that a joke?" asked Alex breathing heavily. The black dragon looked confused as the purple dragon from before came in the doorway. He smiled when he saw Alex, but then looked just as confused as the other dragon when he saw him pinned to the corner of the room.

"What's going on?" asked the purple dragon.

"I don't know. When he got up, I went to hug him and he freaked out," explained the black dragon.

"What's wrong Marty?" asked the purple dragon directing his attention towards Alex.

"I'm… I'm not Marty," said Alex in swallowed breaths.

"What? What are you talking about?" asked the purple dragon walking towards him.

"The boy is telling the truth," spoke somebody in the doorway sounding like a young woman.

"Are you saying this isn't Marty?" asked the black dragon.

"Yes, that is exactly what I'm saying," she spoke walking towards Alex. She wore a long brown robe and looked like a cheetah, except for the fact that her fur was pure white with black spots all over. Alex looked at her tail, calmly lying on the floor as she walked on two legs.

"Where am I?" asked Alex sounding a little calmer.

"You're in our Dragon Dojo," answered the purple dragon, still a little confused.

"So, if you aren't Marty, then who are you?" asked the black dragon.

"My name is Alex," he answered, "Who are you guys?"

"My name is Spyro," answered the purple dragon.

"I'm Cynder," answered the black dragon. The cheetah cleared her throat before speaking.

"I am the all-knowing Nelsine. The majestic soothsayer of this humble dojo," she said with extreme vanity.

"Should we talk with the elders?" asked Spyro.

"I think that's a good idea," answered Cynder, "Can you walk Alex?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine," answered Alex getting up off the floor. Spyro and Cynder stuck close to each other in the front with Alex following them with Nelsine following Alex out the door. The four of them walked into a hallway while Alex pieced something together, staring at the two dragons. He slowed down until he was next to Nelsine

"Hey, are they…like, together?" asked Alex, trying his best to whisper.

"Yes they are. They've been…together since they saved the world," answered Nelsine. Alex gave her a look of disbelief.

"How did they save the world?" he asked almost not believing her.

"Well to be honest, Spyro did all of the work and Cynder just accompanied him on his journey. I don't know why she is still considered a hero," Nelsine said.

"Well clearly she did something to be called a hero," Alex said.

"Don't be so sure. She's still evil. One day, she'll turn her back on all of us," she said sounding annoyed.

Alex stopped talking and thought about this. He stared at Cynder in front of him before looking around him. Still evil? Was she evil to begin with? Alex's head ached with these thoughts He had noticed that they've walked down, what felt like, many hallways until they reached a massive room filled with three dragons, and a small insect.

"Sparx!" shouted Spyro running towards the insect, "Boy is it good to see you!"

"Not as good as it is to see you," replied the insect named Sparx. He saw Alex and flew towards him until he was right in front of his face. He was a yellow dragonfly with white wings. "Is this the all-powerful Marty you've told me so much about?"

"Actually, no he isn't," answered Cynder, "Oh and it's nice to see you too Sparx."

"Hey, I bet it is," Sparx replied humorously. Cynder simply sighed as the other three dragons approached Alex. They were much bigger than Spyro and Cynder. They were about eight feet tall with large wings and tails. The lengths of their bodies were almost twice their height. They all stood by one another as they walked towards Alex.

The dragon in the middle was green with large brown horns on the top of its head that curved backwards. It had a light-brown chest and underbelly. It had green wings and eyes that looked intimidating.

The dragon on the left was light blue with a light purple underbelly. Its scales were layered with spikes and had large purple wings. Its eyes were as blue as its scales and looked a bit more serious than the others.

The dragon on the right of the green dragon was yellow with blue horns and claws. Its chest and underbelly were also blue. It had yellow eyes and seemed to be the cheeriest of the three.

"Is this true, young one?" asked the green dragon, "Are you not Eon?"

"Who's Eon? The cheetah-person said something about Eon," remembered Alex.

"Marty Eon was one of the best warriors we have ever seen," answered the yellow dragon, "He had extraordinary courage and an exceptional heart towards his friends and allies."

"Well I suppose that…if you're not Eon, then you don't know who we are?" said the blue dragon.

"No, I'm pretty sure that I haven't seen any dragons before today," Alex said trying to sound humorous.

"I am Terrador. I bend the earth and ground around your feet," said the green dragon.

"I am Cyril, master of ice and frost," said the blue dragon.

"And I'm Volteer. I command the electricity around you," said the yellow dragon.

"So, if they're masters of the elements, what's your element?" Alex asked directing his attention towards Spyro.

"I can control all four of them," he answered.

"All four? But, they only listed three," asked Alex sounding confused.

"Well, the fourth element is fire, but that guardian isn't here," explained Spyro. Alex simply nodded his head, afraid of asking for too much information.

"What about you?" Alex asked Cynder.

"I have mastery of the dark, wind, poison, and shadows," answered Cynder.

"Terrador, I strongly suggest that I take young Alex here to my study," said Nelsine.

"Very well. Find out what you must to solve this mystery," said Terrador.

"Excellent. We have a lot to discuss," she said with a slight grin.


	6. CH 5: The Truth

Nelsine led Alex down a long corridor until they reached a large wooden door. Nelsine grabbed the handle and yanked it open without a sound as if it were brand new. She gesture Alex to come in as he stared into the room. He slowly walked inside and looked all around this massive chamber.

Alex saw large bookshelves with actual books. Several tables and desks were set up with open books and containers filled with miscellaneous objects upon them. Alex looked behind him and saw Nelsine in the room closing and locking the door with a key. Nelsine grabbed Alex's dagger off a shelf and tossed it at him. He caught it and attached it to his vest.

Alex suddenly realized something and started patting his vest pocket.

"Looking for this?" asked Nelsine placing the book Alex found on the table in front of him. "It's a good read. Do you recognize the author?"

"Can't say that I do," said Alex sounding confused.

"Well, it's a good book. There's just one part that I can't… comprehend," said Nelsine opening it to the page with the chant. Alex, then, grabbed his left forearm with his right hand. "This is written in the ancient dragon dialect, something that I've studied for years. In your language, it means 'Bring to me the ancient land. Bring to me the dreaming sky. Bring to me the valley of cats. Bring to me the world of dragons," explained Nelsine.

"Why is this happening to me?" Alex asked sounding confused.

"The dreams you've been having…" she said before being interrupted.

"Wait, how do you know about my dreams?" asked Alex almost shouting now.

"Your dreams aren't dreams. They are memories of a man who has died years ago," she explained.

"So… what am I?" asked Alex staring at the rune on his forearm. Nelsine chuckled before giving him an answer.

"Everybody looks at you and sees a strong hero. You look at yourself in a mirror and simply see a man who is looking for answers. But, do you know what I see?" I see a coward; I see somebody who's afraid to know the truth," Nelsine said.

"I'm not afraid!" Alex exclaimed.

"Do you really want the truth?" asked Nelsine as if it were an interrogation. Alex stared around him. He looked at his forearm, then the dagger. He breathed in slow and heavy and breathed out the same way.

"Yes I want to know about these memories. I want to know where I am. I want to know! I need to know!" Alex exclaimed.

"Alright then, I'll give it to you. The truth is, you are a clone… of Marty Eon," answered Nelsine. Alex stared at her in complete shock. "You're the clone of a very powerful Pureblood dragon."

"But I'm not a dragon," Alex said weakly.

"Neither is Marty. He just has the blood of a dragon," She held out her hand and, in a black flash, the key-like object from the field appeared.

"That was you?" Alex asked out loud.

"No, but it should have been. She didn't have the stomach to finish you off," said Nelsine pointing the object in his face, "Do you see this? This is a keyblade. Many of your kind have fallen before it's wielder. You don't deserve any different than the others." Nelsine pointed the keyblade towards the wall and a small beam of light shot out of the end of the weapon. A wall of light appeared in the shape of a keyhole.

"Walk forewards young one," Nelsine ordered. Alex walked towards the light, but stopped right in front of it. Nelsine shoved him into the light and he was automatically transported into another room. This one was completely white. A large floor stood below his feet and many thrones sat upon short pillars around him. On the thrones, each sat armored knights similar to the one on the field.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the court, I present you, Alex Eon of the Eon family!" Nelsine exclaimed behind him.


	7. CH 6: The Royal Court of Light

Every one of them sat in their thrones staring at him. Alex couldn't see a single face due to their helmets. Their armor was very similar with a few differences.

"Nelsine, how is this one related to the Eon family? Master Marty was the last in his family," spoke a male sitting in the middle of seven of the biggest thrones.

"I'm his clone!" Alex shouted.

"That is impossible. In order for you to be a clone you must have been created almost sixteen years ago and Marty didn't know of his family history until he was thirteen," said a male sitting to the right of the first one who spoke.

"Riku, we must examine all possibilities," said a female voice on the left side of the first speaker.

"He has a point Kairi. This is more of a mystery that we're solving," spoke the first one.

"Listen, Master Riku, use your dark gift to show his… true nature," said Nelsine smirking. The one on the right of the first speaker looked to the one in the center and he nodded. Riku got up and held out his hand. In a black flash, a keyblade appeared. The blade section was in the basic shape of a triangle and at the end, was a piece that looked like a wing.

He pointed it at Alex and the end of the keyblade started to glow.

"Don't move or it will hurt," he said as Alex tried staying as still as possible. A black beam of light shot out at Alex as he placed his left arm in front of him at the last second. The beam hit his arm and a black column of light surrounded him. Alex couldn't see through the light as he fell down on his hands and knees.

Alex felt every thought and memory of hatred flow into him as he closed his eyes. He saw memories of bullies at school, mean teachers, and gangs beating him up on the street. He felt a tidal wave of anger flow over him. The light disappeared, but the memories didn't. He heard people gasp in amazement all around him.

Alex opened his eyes and stared at his hands. His skin had hardened and split into black scales. His fingernails had sharpened themselves into claws. Spikes covered most of his body and two large wings hung from the surface of his back. The front of his head stretched forward, making him look like a dragon. A black chest plate covered his torso, shoulders and legs.

"He's a Pure-Blood!" shouted one.

"Kill him here and know!" shouted another.

"Silence!" commanded the first speaker. The entire room hushed itself. All that was heard was Alex's heavy breathing.

"What happened to me?" Alex exclaimed.

"We have simply revealed what you truly are, a monster who doesn't deserve to live," exclaimed Nelsine.

"Nelsine, we all know what happened to your family, but this mortal had nothing to do with it," spoke the female.

"This, mortal, is the same as the murderer. He's the same creature!"

"Just because he's a black dragon it doesn't mean he's connected to the murderer," explained the male next to the first speaker.

"They're all bad! They're all power-hungry!" exclaimed Nelsine.

"You know it wasn't her fault!" yelled the female.

"Cynder deserves to die!" shouted Nelsine.

"Enough!" ordered the first speaker. Nelsine fell to her knees in tears. Alex got up on his feet and stared at Nelsine for a few seconds. He, then, returned his attention to the seven large thrones.

"I demand to know where I am and who you are," Alex shouted. They all turned their attention towards Alex

"You are in the presence of The Royal Court of Light," the first speaker said, "We are the One Hundred Keepers of the Keyblade. Rheimer, take care of our visitor while Hunter tends to Nelsine." Two knights stood up and the others vanished in orbs of light. One walked towards Alex while the other one walked towards Nelsine. The one namd Hunter and Nelsine vanished exactly how the others did.

He was all alone with this knight. She grabbed Alex's left arm and whispered something under her breath. He was surrounded in a cloud of black mist and emerged as a human. Alex pulled out his dagger, and pointed it at her.

"Listen, if you try anything… I'll stab you," he said trying to act as tough as possible, dispite his fear.

"You're terrible at making threats," she said not sounding the least bit worried.

"Wait a minute, you're the one who protected me from that creature!" he said recognizing her voice.

"Good job," she said sounding amused. He started to get the feeling that she wasn't going to hurt him.

"Hey, is Nelsine going to be alright?" Alex asked worriedly.

"She'll be fine. It's just, she's still in mourning," She answered.

"Was her family really murdered?" asked Alex.

"Yes," she answered.

"By Cynder?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied. Alex couldn't believe what he was hearing. Alex was being told that she's a murderer. He tried shaking the thought aside by switching to a new topic.

"Why did you spare me?" Alex asked.

"I don't know. It would have been easier to kill you. However, you may still have a chance," Rheimer explained.

"Wait, what chance?" Alex asked.

"I don't think he wants me to tell you," she said. Rheimer held out her hand and a keyhole-shaped wall of light appeared like in Nelsine's study.

"Who? You're not making any sense," shouted Alex.

"Don't worry about it, you'll find out soon enough. In the meantime you can head back to the dragons' dojo," assured Rheimer.

"Wait, what should I do about Nelsine?" Alex asked.

"Tell Cyril that Nelsine was treated by The Circle. He'll know what it means," she answered. Alex took some time thinking about it before nodding his head.

"Well, bye then Rheimer," said Alex as he walked into the light.

"I hate that name," Rheimer muttered as that world faded away behind Alex.


	8. CH 7: Past and Present

Alex appeared back in Nelsine's study. He thought about what Rheimer had meant when she said that. Alex left the room and looked for Cyril. He couldn't find him or anyone else here. He discovered a section of the dojo that he had not visited. Alex walked down a long corridor that led to an open balcony.

Alex saw that it was just before dusk outside. He was about to continue looking until he saw Cynder standing near the edge looking out. Then, Nelsine's story came to him. He walked to Cynder hoping to get answers. He got to the railing and placed his arms upon it. She saw him and seemed depressed or, at least, lost in thought. After a few moments of silence, Alex decided to speak.

"Hey, so, I was talking to Nelsine and she said something that was… disturbing," he said trying his best to word it properly.

"I bet I can take it. I've heard some pretty nasty things," she said trying to hide how she felt.

"No, this… this was about you," Alex added.

"What did she say?" asked Cynder not making eye contact.

"Well she said… she said you… you murdered her family," he struggled to say.

"Oh, I probably did," said Cynder still not making eye contact.

"You probably did? How would you not know?" he asked, more confused than ever.

"I've taken a lot of lives in the past," Cynder said staring at the ground.

"You mean mass murders?" Alex asked almost sounding scared.

"I was under a spell," Cynder said looking into the sky. Alex took a few steps back.

"What kind of spell?" Alex asked.

"It was another dragon. He bent me to his will and I've murdered so many," she said finally making eye contact with Alex, "Until, Spyro came and defeated me. I tried to kill him too but I couldn't. He defeated me and broke the spell."

"I… I had no idea. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable," Alex said apologetically. Cynder made a slight chuckle and started to walk away. She stopped, dead in her tracks.

"What else is there?" asked Cynder, still looking away from him.

"What do you mean?" asked Alex.

"Do you expect me to think that I'm the only thing you and Nelsine talked about?" said Cynder facing me.

"Well, yeah," Alex said trying to sound comical. Cynder sighed while looking at the ground. She shook her head and looked up at him.

"How are you related to Marty?" asked Cynder much more serious. Alex hesitated and thought if he should tell her or not. Then, he figured that if Cynder told him about her past, it's only fair that he tells her the truth.

"Well, it turns out that… I'm his clone," he said lowering his voice, "And I'm a… pureblood." Cynder's eyes widened and her jaw dropped.

"That would explain everything! Did you turn into your dragon form?" asked Cynder sounding excited.

"Yeah but…"

"Are you a black dragon?" interjected Cynder.

"Yes," he said, briefly, afraid of being interrupted.

"By the ancients, you are him! Follow me!" she said before running down a hallway. Alex took after her, running as fast as he could. Cynder took off the ground and started flying down the circular hallway.

"There sure are a lot of hallways in here," Alex said almost out of breath.

"It's mainly one massive hallway," said Cynder slowing down. She stopped in front of a doorway. Alex caught up with her and took a second to catch his breath. He looked inside and saw a massive circular chamber. A large stone dragon stood in the center of the room. Cynder flew to a section of the circular chamber and applied pressure to a single brick. The entire statue slowly sank underneath the floor. Now, the room was about the size of a stadium with a very tall ceiling.

"What is this place?" asked Alex looking around him.

"It's not called a dojo for nothing," said Cynder flying near the top of the ceiling. It was a round room with murals painted on the brick walls. Alex looked all around while Cynder flew down to Alex.

"C'mon, time to start your training," she said standing in the center of the room. Alex turned his attention to Cynder and saw a large green circle engraved into the ground surrounding her.

"What's this?" asked Alex pointing to the circle on the ground.

"That's how we train. You think of something outside of the circle and the thing you thought of appears inside of the circle," explained Cynder, "However, you need to change into a dragon first."

"How?" asked Alex.

"You don't know?" asked Cynder. Alex shook his head while staring at his arm. It was the same rune, but now it had a dragon claw in the circle. He felt that he could change back somehow.

"Um, transform! Change… into a dragon!" he shouted, hoping it would work. Alex's head started pounding and throbbing. It built up in a matter of seconds, and then stopped suddenly. Something, like a spark, ignited within him. He placed his left hand onto the rune as it glowed. He slowly lifted his hand and a black crystal in the shape of a long curved tooth appeared in his palm.

"Dovah!" he shouted before throwing the crystal on the floor. It shattered and formed a black swirling mist around Alex. When it disappeared, Alex's body transformed, just as it did before. Cynder stared at him for a few seconds before speaking.

"Well, the first thing you'll want to know is how to fly," said Cynder taking into the air, "While like this, you can use your wings like any of your limbs. Oh, and your tail too." said Cynder. Alex looked behind him and saw a black tail with a black spike at the end of it. He moved his wings and it felt like moving more arms; it came so naturally.

He flapped his wings slowly and steadily built up speed. He couldn't seem to get up off the ground.

"It's not working," said Alex.

"I have an idea. Jump as high as you can and open your wings," suggested Cynder. Alex bent down and jumped up about fifteen feet in the air. As he was falling back down he opened his wings and felt the air below them. He flapped them once, twice, three times. He felt himself riding the wind. He was flying. He flew around the training room.

"This is awesome!" exclaimed Alex, "I'm flying!"

"Alright, now it's time to just fly in place. You need to just be suspended in the air," said Cynder hovering in place. It took some time for Alex to stop flying and pay attention, but he eventually got the message. It was harder than it sounded. Alex had to turn his wings horizontally so that he could stay still. He almost fell but caught himself before crashing to the ground. He was able to suspend himself a few feet from the ground while talking to Cynder.

"This is amazing! I can't believe I can fly!" exclaimed Alex.

"Well, it looks like you got the basics down, wanna' fly outside?" asked Cynder.

"Sure," answered Alex. Cynder flew out of the room and towards the balcony with Alex flying slowly behind her. They made it to the balcony as the sun was setting. Cynder stared at the sun for a few seconds before turning back to Alex.

"I know where we should go, follow me," said Cynder rising into the air. She flew off the balcony and Alex, hesitantly, flew after her. He chased her for a few seconds before turning around. He saw the dojo. It was a large circular building with a glass dome on top of it. He looked at the balcony, then right below him. The balcony was few feet below him, but tall trees lived, at least, a hundred feet below the balcony.

He noticed Cynder waiting for him and went back to her. When he got close enough, both Cynder and Alex flew up a few feet and stopped mid-air.

"Do notice that in the distance?" asked Cynder pointing to the tops of large buildings and structures a few miles away.

"Yeah," said Alex, surprised that he could see that far.

"That's the Dragon City. That's where Spyro and the others went," explained Cynder.

"Why didn't you go with them?" asked Alex.

"I'm still a little bruised from the battle yesterday," answered Cynder.

"What battle?" asked Alex.

"You know, the one with the large group of apes," said Cynder. Alex realized that when he was asleep, it was for an entire day! Now he wondered how Rheimer fits into all of this. Why did she want him to sleep for a whole day? Why did she spare him when Nelsine wanted him dead? He also felt that her voice was familiar somehow. It seemed that he heard her voice somewhere before. Cynder looked, again, at the sun and remembered something.

"I almost forgot, keep following!" she said taking off again. He stayed close to her, getting used to flying, as they reached a grassy hill. They both landed as the red sun slowly began to sink below the horizon. "The best view of the sunset."

"I won't argue with you there. It's amazing," said Alex still as a dragon. Cynder laid down with her head on her front paws while Alex sat up being supported by his hands.

"I used to come here all the time with Spyro," she said sighing.

"Why don't you anymore?" Alex asked.

"Because we… when we heard that Martin… we heard that Martin died a few years ago," spoke Cynder struggling to get the words out.

"I need to stop asking about peoples' lives," said Alex, "I feel like a tear-magnet." Cynder let out a small chuckle as Alex smiled. It seemed hard to believe that she had ever hurt anybody. She was very kind, especially with a background like hers. Alex watched the sun's last few moments above the horizon, forgetting everything that had happened today, and yesterday.

As the last bit of sunlight vanished, Cynder stood up and flexed her wings. Figuring that it was time to leave, Alex stood up and thought about something.

"Hey Cynder, what do you know about the dragon language?" he asked her.

"Well, I know that it's a dead language, except for one place," she answered, "Why?"

"Because Nelsine said that the dragon's language was how I got here," he explained.

"I meant to ask you how you got here," she remembered.

"I read a book and, apparently, it was written in dragon," Alex spoke. Cynder concentrated hard on this before speaking again.

"Let's head back, it gets bad out here after dark, trust me," she said taking off. Alex crouched down and jumped up to catch air under his wings and start flying. The two of them headed towards the dojo with Cynder looking confused. Suddenly, Alex remembered what Nelsine had said about the author.

"Also, Nelsine seemed to think that the author of this book had some importance," Alex spoke.

"Why, who's the author?" asked Cynder.

"It's Al…" Alex spoke before stopping himself. He stared into open space, recollecting the events that had occurred. A female named Ally Rheimer wrote this book and he just met a female named Rheimer. Could it possibly be a coincidence? He started putting everything together.

"Are you okay?" asked Cynder.

"Huh? Yeah, it's just, I need to check something back at the dojo," he explained.

"Well, it's gonna' have to wait until tomorrow," she said.

"What? Why?" asked Alex.

"We aren't allowed to walk around the dojo at night while the others are gone or asleep," she answered.

"Why?" Alex asked as they landed on the balcony.

"It's a long story," she said staring at the ground in discomfort.

"I really need to stop doing that!" said Alex.

"Don't worry about it," she said, "C'mon, I'll show you where you're sleeping." She started walking down the hall while Alex followed, just inches, behind her. He had so many questions to ask her, but he knew that he learned more than he should of for today. Cynder took Alex to the same room he woke up in earlier that day.

Without a word, she left and Alex was alone. As if by thought, Alex became human again in the same clothes as before. He had thousands of thoughts swimming in his head at once. Alex took his shoes and vest off and threw them under the bed. He climbed under the covers and closed his eyes, hoping that all of this would go away. A single tear slid down his cheek. He was fearful, of another dream.


	9. CH 8: The Torpor

So many images whizzed by in his head. However, they were all images of what had happened earlier. He saw himself meeting the others, his confrontation with Nelsine, his talk with Cynder, and everything else. Overall, it was pleasant seeing these again. They slowly faded away and Alex opened his eyes.

He felt like he had had the best sleep in a long time. He woke up in the same round bed and room. He still wore the same clothes and looked under the bed to find his vest, dagger, and shoes. He stayed under the covers for a few seconds and was about to go back to sleep when Spyro came in with something draped over his back.

"Good morning Alex," he said with a pleasant smile.

"Hello," Alex spoke.

"How are you doing?" Spyro asked just in front of the bed.

"Good, I guess. How are you?" answered Alex.

"I'm doing well. Sorry we had to leave yesterday," said Spyro.

"Cynder said you went to the Dragon City," added Alex.

"Yeah, we had to give a report about the artifact you found," said Spyro.

"Do you want me to give it to you?" asked Alex reaching under the bed.

"No, I told them that Marty had it and they think that it's best that he keeps it," said Spyro. Alex took his hand out from under the bed in confusion.

"But… I'm not Marty," he said.

"Cynder told me that you're a clone," Spyro said.

"Really?" asked Alex.

"Yeah, she told everybody," answered Spyro. Alex actually felt relieved to not have the burden of telling them. "Well, take this, some new clothes." Spyro put a brown robe on the bed while Alex stared at his own clothes. They were full of grass strains and dirt patches. "When you're done, meet us on the balcony. You know where that is right?"

"Yeah, I know where it is," answered Alex. Spyro walked out of his room and Alex sat completely sill. After a few minutes, he put on the robe over what he was wearing and gabbed his shoes from under his bed.

He put them on and reached for the dagger. He placed it in a pocket on the robe and sat back down on the bed for a few seconds. Cynder walked passed his room and Alex got up to talk to her.

"Cynder, wait," he said as Cynder turned around.

"Can I ask you something?" asked Alex.

"Sure, I guess," she answered as they both started walking towards the balcony.

"About last night, I'm sorry I made you feel uncomfortable," said Alex.

"Listen, it's okay," said Cynder.

"It's just, why would you tell me a story like yours? I hardly know you," Alex asked her,

"Because… I don't think you're a clone of Marty. I think you're him and you just lost your memory somehow," she answered. Alex stopped walking. He had never thought of that. Could that possibly be it? Is it impossible for him to be a clone because he isn't? He wasn't sure if he was getting more answers, or questions. Cynder kept walking until she was nearly out of sight and Alex ran towards the balcony.

He saw everybody eating some sort of meat. They were sitting down and ripping at it with their jaws but stopped when Alex arrived. They all stood still and quiet while Alex did the same. Cynder stood up.

"May Spyro and I be excused Terrador?" Cynder asked.

"Of course," said Terrador sounding a little confused.

"Thank you Terrador. C'mon Spyro," said Cynder while Spyro put down his meat and followed Cynder. Alex and Spyro began following Cynder until Alex saw Cyril and remembered what Rheimer had said. He ran over to him.

"Nelsine is being dealt with by the circle," he said to him. Cyril looked concerned for a few seconds, but thanked Alex for the information. He ran off after Spyro and Cynder and found them in the training room. He couldn't see the dragon statue. It was a massive empty chamber with nothing in it but Spyro and Cynder.

"Alright, let's continue your training. We're gonna practice your combat skills now," Cynder said while Alex clutched his arm, "Check this out Spyro." This time, Alex thought the word "dovah" to himself and the crystal still emerged from the rune. He grabbed it with his left arm and crushed it with his fist and a shroud of black mist surrounded him and he emerged in his dragon form, which looked the same as before.

"That's amazing!" Spyro shouted.

"I know. Isn't that cool?" added Cynder.

"Okay. Let's get started with the training," said Alex getting a little impatient.

"You remember how it works, right?" asked Cynder.

"Yeah, let's get started," he answered.

"Okay. Step inside the circle and I'll… conjure something for you," she said as Alex walked into the center of the circle. She closed her eyes and a small ape dummy appeared in front of him. He unsheathed his dagger and stood his ground. The dummy walked towards him and Alex took a step back. It had no weapons; it was an animated wooden dummy.

He ran up to it and pounced on it, causing it to fall to the ground. He got up and the dummy vanished.

"Huh?" said Alex

"Don't worry. That happens when you've defeated the enemy," explained Spyro. Alex nodded his head and prepared for the next practice. Next, three of the same dummies appeared. He felt like somebody was giving directions on how to attack them; it came to him naturally.

The three dummies were lined side-to-side and Alex got low to the ground. He jumped up above the apes and stabbed the chest of the middle dummy, then landed on the ground and sprinted to the left and, smoothly, cut off the arm of that one. Both dummies fell to the ground and one dummy remained. It ran to Alex as he stood still. He sheathed his dagger grappled the dummy. He wrapped his massive wings around it and jumped up about twenty feet, spiraling up and letting go of the dummy as Alex hovered in the air. It fell to the ground and splintered into smaller pieces.

Alex slowly hovered down to the floor and transformed back into a human. Both Spyro and Cynder had widened eyes and dropped jaws.

"You know, I don't think you need training," suggested Spyro. Alex laughed a little before remembering something.

"Hey I need to do something. I'll see you later, I guess," said Alex before rushing out. He ran all the way to Nelsine's study. He slowly opened the door, walked in, and slowly closed it behind him. On top of the small table in the room was the book he found yesterday. He stared at the book in his hand as if expecting the answer to jump out at him.

He was about to walk out when he saw a large glass filled with a strange liquid. By the shape of the bottle, Alex assumed it was a potion of some kind.

"Drink it. Drink my torpor," whispered a mysterious female voice. Alex looked around him but didn't see anybody.

"Where are you? Who are you?" Alex shouted.

"Poor boy, you're only looking for answers. Drink the torpor, my child, and get those answers," she whispered. Alex felt the strength of her influence. He had no choice. He grabbed the bottle, took off the cap, and drank its contents. To him, it tasted like water, tasteless. He put the bottle and the cap down. For a few seconds there was nothing. Then, the world around him darkened until it was completely back.

The world brightened again, but he wasn't in Nelsine's study anymore. He was in a grassy plain. Also, he wasn't him anymore. He had a tail and white… fur; he was Nelsine.


	10. CH 9: Waking Nightmares

Somehow, he was Nelsine. He saw through her eyes but didn't have control over the body. She had firewood in her hands and was walking to a village. Several small huts occupied the small space. Nelsine also looked younger, a few years younger.

"Nelsine! Nelsine! Can you play now?" asked a female cheetah younger than her.

"Sorry, I've still got another load to take after this one," said Nelsine. She gave Nelsine a sad pouted face and Nelsine rolled her eyes at her. "Tell you what, if you take in this load to my hut, I can go get the other one and be done faster."

"Okay! Good idea!" shouted the little girl. Nelsine handed her the load and ran into the woods to get the other wood she had cut. When she reached the woodpile, she stopped for a few seconds to catch her breath before picking up the small logs. While walking back, she heard a loud roar echoing and decided to hurry back to the village. She didn't know what it was or where it was.

She slowed down when she realized that it had stopped. She felt better and just walked slowly for a while, until she saw a shadow on the ground. She looked up and saw a large black dragon flying towards the village. She dropped her wood and ran towards the huts. She ran as fast as she could but was shocked when she had reached her village; every hut was on fire.

"Mother! Mother!" shouted Nelsine, "Mother, where are you?"

"Nelsine, stay back!" shouted an older white cheetah. Nelsine saw that her mother and sister were trapped in their hut surrounded by flames.

"Mother!" Nelsine shouted as she ran towards the hut she was trapped in. The dragon hovered over and doused the hut in flames, causing it to collapse.

"No!" shouted Nelsine. The dragon turned her attention to the crying child. Nelsine stared into the dragon's eyes. The dragon just stared back at her. It had long white horns and large purple wings, full of wholes and scars. An arrow flew by and hit the dragon just below the left eye. The dragon shook around in pain and frustration. Nelsine, with tear-drenched eyes, looked where the arrow came from and saw another cat run towards her holding a bow in his left hand.

"Nelsine! Get down!" he shouted. She ducked behind a burnt hut and he followed. The dragon ignored the pain and searched again for Nelsine. Arrows shot around it from the back and the dragon turned her attention to the archers behind her. He grabbed Nelsine's arm and they ran as fast as they could. They ran into the forest, past trees, and over rivers. Eventually they found an empty cave and rested. Nelsine burst into tears.

"Hunter! They're gone! Mother and Sissy are gone!" she exclaimed

"Hush child. Everything will be fine," he said in a comforting tone.

"What will we do?" she asked, still in tears.

"I have to get word to Ignitus, but don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you Nelsine," he said hugging her. He brought out a whistle from a pouch on his robes, and put it to his lips. It was long and the end had a bird's head carved into it. He blew into it for a brief moment and put it back into his robe's pouch. Hunter, then, pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill. He ran down to a river outside the cave.

He dipped the quill into the mud and wrote on the parchment. Nelsine followed and watched as he wrote, "Ignitus, we require your assistance. Cynder has attacked our village." Nelsine saw the name of the dragon: Cynder. They both heard a screech and Hunter rolled up the parchment and placed it into a cylindrical container and ran towards the eagle that made the sound.

Hunter held out his hand and the bird landed upon it. He made it open one talon and gave it the cylinder.

"Go to Ignitus. Let him read the message and take him back here," he ordered the bird. It squawked in understanding the command and flew off with the Cylinder. Nelsine never took her mind off Cynder. She killed her family and she wanted revenge; she thought… Cynder deserved to die.

The world darkened and Alex was back to normal. There was a bright flash and Alex was in a new scene. Now, he was engulfed in flames and the woman broke into tears while holding him. It was the same dream as the first. It was only for a brief second, before it blackened again and Alex was in darkness.

"Stop! I don't want to see this!" cried out Alex.

"Foolish child! You've escaped my grasp long enough!" shouted the mysterious woman.

"Alex," somebody faintly whispered behind him. He turned around and, in the dark, all he could see was Jacob and Ashley laying on the floor in a pool of blood.

"No. No no no no!" shouted Alex rushing to his friends. He got to them and they faded into nothingness in front of his eyes.

"Stop this! Stop this now!" shouted Alex in tears.

"Alex! Wake up!" shouted an echoing voice.

"No! This boy is mine child!"

"Alex, snap out of it!" she shouted again. The world around him brightened and chased away the darkness.

"No! You will be mine boy! Nobody can escape their nightmares," said the mysterious woman as the world got brighter and brighter. There was no sign of the darkness. Alex felt himself lying upon something hard and cold. He couldn't get his eyes to open; they were too weak. He sat up and supported himself with his hands, his eyes still closed. The second he got up, he felt cold arms embrace him and was startled.

He opened his eyes and backed up, using his hands, until his back was against the wall. In front of him, he saw a large blue dragon with assorted crystals around his neck and Rheimer standing next to him. However, Rheimer wasn't wearing her helmet and Alex saw her face. It was the same girl he saw in his dreams.

"Ally… your name is Ally," Alex sputtered.

"Yes," she said slowly, "Yes it is."


	11. CH 10: An Explanation

His breathing slowed as he began to stand up. Rheimer/Ally and the dragon watched Alex very intently.

"What have I done? This is all my fault!" she cried out.

"Relax child. You were scared," spoke the blue dragon.

"I was foolish Ignitus!" spoke Ally.

"What happened?" asked Alex, "Wait, I shouldn't ask. I'm sorry."

"No. You need to know, you have so many questions. You deserve to know," said Ally, "Go ahead."

"Well, am I a clone of Marty?" asked Alex. Ally gave a long quiet sigh before speaking.

"Yes. Yes you are," she spoke slowly. Alex showed no change of emotion.

"Why are you called Rheimer in the Court?" he asked

"It's my last… my real last name. Though, I prefer Eon to be my last name," she answered.

"Did you write the book that took me here?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered.

"Do you know Marty?" he asked.

"Of course," she answered.

"Why did you put me to sleep for so long?" he asked.

"Sorry, I used too much miasma. I had to test something," she answered.

"What?" he asked.

"Have you noticed that ever since I first saw you, your nightmares have weakened, well except recently?" asked Ally.

"Yeah! Why do I have these nightmares?" he asked.

"It's Vaermina. She's plagued you with these dreams," she answered, "And she wouldn't of… if I… if only I…"

"Young child, it is not your fault. Ease your mind Ally," spoke the dragon in a comforting voice, "I think it's time I answer some of your questions. Vaermina is a daedra, a god-like being that inhabits a realm of Oblivion called Quagmire." Alex took a few seconds of pause to think about this. When he was taken to this place, was it a realm? Was he taken to a different dimension? Was it possible that he traveled across space and time? This seemed impossible, yet, it was happening.

"Wait, so if I'm a clone, who… created me, for lack of better words," he asked. The blue dragon turned to Ally, now facing the opposite direction. She turned around, her face drenched with tears.

"I… I did," she sputtered, "I'm sorry. I felt, alone. I saw Marty burn in my hands and my anger took over. I attacked the squad he was in, killing all six members. I then, was exiled and I created you. I was forced to go back in time so that, when I went back to the present, you would be this age. I tried my best to hide you from prying eyes, but I couldn't. I'm sorry."

"So you went to the Court for help," he added.

"Yes. I've realized my mistake, but I couldn't fix it," Ally explained.

"That's why you made the book! You knew about my dreams! But, how?" Alex spoke.

"Isn't it obvious? The book was about psychology. It was about the mind," she spoke wiping away her tears.

"Wait, are you saying you're psychic?" he asked.

"In a way, yes," she answered.

"Wow, surprisingly that's the most normal thing I've heard all day," Alex said trying to lift his own spirits. Suddenly, Alex felt a cold burst of wind rush past him.

"Oh no, she's back," spoke Ally, summoning her keyblade. Alex drew his dagger and tried to look intimidating. Then, the same shrill voice echoed in his head like before.

"You cannot escape my grasp child. I am Vaermina!" she spoke slowly. A large purple orb of light formed around Alex and consumed him. When the orb diminished, Alex was in a world of darkness. He couldn't see anything at all, except for a staff. A long stick decorated with bones and a horned skull at the top hovered in mid-air a few feet in front of him.

Alex began to walk towards the staff as a young woman in an elegant black robe appeared at the staff's left side like a ghost.

"Vaermina!" he shouted.

"Hello child," she spoke softly. Alex ran towards her with his dagger drawn. She held out her staff and a large red orb shot out at Alex, pushing him back. He couldn't seem to find the strength to get back up. The pain he felt was unlike anything he had ever experienced.

"You're a fool to challenge me boy," she spoke, in the same tone as before. Both her and the staff vanished into a black mist that plummeted into the ground. A large whirlpool formed on the ground. It was about forty feet in diameter and barely visible. Two large yellow orbs formed in the pool, and Alex knew what was happening.

A large muscular creature, easily thirty feet tall emerged from the pool. It was shaped like a human with no head. The two, eye-like orbs, were attached to the creature's chest. Alex was able to gather enough strength to summon his wings, claws, and scales. He held the dagger tightly and jumped up at the creature. He slashed at its eyes, but the dagger went straight through and it grabbed him.

Struggling to get free, Alex was thrown far back, but was not badly injured. He heard Vaermina laugh.

"You fool, you can create a heartless with that blade but cannot destroy them," she spoke, sounding proud of herself, "Even your heartless can destroy heartless, but you yourself are helpless! Ironic is it not?" Alex took this into consideration and developed, both, the smartest and stupidest idea he had ever had. He placed his left hand on the pommel stone while still clutching the dagger in his right and plunged in into his chest as hard as he could.


	12. CH 11: Heartless

Alex fell, dead to the ground as the pommel stone shattered by his feet. A whirlpool and a curved-horn…heartless…emerged from the dark depths. Alex could feel himself inside the creature. He felt, stronger. He was hunched over staring at the massive heartless in front of him.

It swung its massive hand towards Alex as he jumped up over it. He landed on the ground and, swiftly, jumped and slashed his dagger-like claws, sinking them into its chest. He jumped back and the heartless fell to its hands and knees. Alex ignored it and looked behind him. He saw a dragon corpse, his dragon corpse.

Alex stared down at his misty claws. He shivered at the thought of what he had done, at what he was capable of. Behind him, the creature evaporated and Vaermina stood their holding her staff. She appeared tired.

"You will bow before me child! You…will bow!" she muttered. The dark, cold, world around Alex slowly brightened as Vaermina disappeared without a word. It all became a white blur as a bright flash appeared. Alex found himself standing, as a human, in one of the many alleyways on Corouscant.

His eyes slowly adjusted to the light as he regained familiarity with his location. It wasn't far from his apartment. Alex slowly took a long look around him before walking towards a crowded street. He didn't walk very far until…

"Alex," he heard a soft voice whisper, Ashley's voice. Alex turned around and saw Ashley and Jacob on their knees. Large, black, blades erupted out of their chests. Behind them, stood a black woman with metallic skin and bright yellow eyes wielding the hilts of the blades.

She jerked her hand away from Ashley and the blade was removed. She fell to the ground, blood staining the dress she was wearing. Then, she did the same to Jacob, causing him to fall with blood staining his black tuxedo. As he fell, something fell out of his pocket and rolled to Alex.

He picked it up. It was a small, fuzzy, box. He opened it and burst into tears as he collapsed onto his knees. Inside was a small, silver, ring aligned with white jewels. He dropped the box and stood back up; grief turned into rage. The rune on his arm glowed as black mist surrounded him. There were no claws, scales, or wings. He wasn't a dragon; he was himself but darker. His eyes glowed white as he dashed towards her with his dagger in hand.

Then, in a blur, everything happened at once. He dashed past her, but hit nothing. Behind him, mist slowly surrounded her blade. Next to her, laid a misty arm that faded into nothingness. Alex looked to his right to see his left forearm missing. The black mist evaporated from him as he dropped to the ground. There was no blood, just a massive scab where his elbow was; it felt like it was singed of. She walked slowly towards him.

"Just as weak as the original. Such a shame really. You showed real promised," she said calmly. She held her blades above him, ready to finish him. Suddenly, she erupted into flames. She looked behind her to see an armored knight wielding two black keyblades. "Nelsine?" she said with a smile. "Boethiah would be proud of you,"

"I no longer serve the daedra," she said in a stifled voice.

"Fool! You are always in league with the daedra!" she shouted as the flames dissipated. "Farewell." A black orb formed around her and she disappeared. Nelsine walked towards Alex as he slowly closed his eyes.


	13. CH 12: In the End

It was cold. It was dark. He saw nothing. He heard nothing. There was…nothing. Alex laid on the ground with his back against something. His eyes were closed, and his body immobile. He felt helpless. He felt useless. He felt…dead. Is this what death was like; or was it all a dream? It must be a dream! It has to be! What he saw couldn't have been real, could it?

Suddenly, Alex felt the world brighten. He felt more able to move. His eyes slowly opened, but were forced shut when two soft arms clasped him.

"Whoever is hugging me this time, could you please let go?" spoke Alex groggily. They didn't let go. Alex felt fur brush up against his bare skin and forced his eyes open. He saw short white fur covered with black spots. "Nelsine?" he forced himself to speak. She slowly released her hold and backed up, revealing herself.

"It's good you're okay," she said softly. Alex looked around him. He was in a large blue room with different-colored crystals upon the walls. He looked down and saw himself in a bed with no shirt on and a large bandage wrapped around his stomach.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"You're in a healing room, in the Dragon City," she answered. He tried removing the bed sheet with his left hand, but found it missing. In place of his forearm, was a purple cap encased in a type of metal that he had not seen before.

"So, it wasn't a dream, was it?" he asked slowly.

"Afraid not," she answered handing Alex the small box. He took it and shoved it into a pocket of the pair of pants he was wearing. He struggled to keep back tears.

"Why did you save me?" he asked.

"Because, we have more in common then I thought," she said sitting on the bed. He stared down at the bed sheets in thought.

"Well, thank you," he said slowly. A small smile appeared in the corner of her mouth. It was the first time he had seen her smile. "Where are the others?"

"They're here, do you want me to get them?" Alex nodded his head and Nelsine left the room. A few moments later She returned with Spyro, Cynder, and Ally.

"I can't believe you're okay! You were out for a long time," exclaimed Cynder.

"It's good to have you back," said Cynder.

"Thanks Spyro," he said with a smile. The three of them stood to the sides while Ally, in a blue tunic, approached Alex carrying a robotic hand.

"I made this for you," she said holding it out in front of him. It was a black gauntlet with sharp-pointed fingers like claws. Spikes broke out all across the surface of the arm. She held the arm with the hand facing her and Alex held out the rest of his left arm.

"This may sting just a bit," she spoke warningly. She placed the gauntlet on the metal clap and felt a surge of electricity travel up his arm and into his head. When the pain dissipated, he stared at his robotic arm. He could move the wrist, the fingers, everything. This was his arm. He could move it as he pleased and the others stood in amazement.

"Thank you," he said sincerely.

"You're very welcome," she said speaking as Alex was, "I think we'll be going now. I'm very happy to see you alive." Alex sat in the bed thinking. How was it all possible? It was impossible! It had to be, but it isn't. He flipped over the covers and set his feet against the cold hard floor. He had trouble standing but eventually found his balance.

He took slow steps as he walked out the door. There was nobody around him. He saw many rooms almost identical to the one he was in; they were all empty. Alex slowly walked until he found a balcony with miscellaneous plants placed in a well-organized manner, a garden. He walked in the garden until he reached the armrest on the edge. He looked over and saw large buildings with different creatures flying around. He took in a deep breath.

"Good, you're up," spoke a familiar voice. Alex looked around him and saw the Court Leader in the doorway walking towards him. "You did a fine job against Vaermina. You think on your feet. A very good skill to have."

"You know what I did?" Alex asked, shocked.

"Of course. I would never miss an opportunity to watch myself fight," he spoke, sounding amused.

"What are talking about?" Alex asked. He turned his head, as if making sure nobody was looking, and removed his helmet. He revealed his scruffy hair, tan skin, and blue eyes. He revealed Alex.

"No. You're… you're Marty," he spoke slowly.

"Yes. And I must say, I am very proud of you," he said calmly.

"But Ally…they said… I thought you were…"

"Calm down. I faked my death. It was the only way," he spoke apologetically.

"Why? Why would you want everybody to think you were dead?" Alex asked, confused.

"I'm sorry. It's just… I couldn't do it anymore. Everybody was following my lead and I would never forgive myself if anybody died," he answered.

"You were always watching her, through the council. That's why you wanted her to kill me and not Nelsine. You knew she wouldn't," he spoke piecing things together.

"Yes, but listen, you must not tell anybody that I am alive," he pleaded.

"What? But they need you. I can't do what you can. I just can't!" Alex said.

"You're right. You can do more than what I can do," assured Marty. He walked a few feet back and placed his helmet back onto his head. "Don't worry. Don't be like me; be more." He disappeared in a white flash and Alex was all alone in the garden, clueless as what to do. What would he do? What could he do?

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